Grandma Helen called the other day and put me "on notice" to update the blog! She checks it every day! This doesn't catch things up ALL the way, but it gets us closer to present day. One day I'm going to learn that it takes lots less time if I do frequent, short updates, instead of letting too much time pass. One day...
Of course, we have been bowling. The girls love it. Brooke usually poops out before the second game is done, but then she lets Olivia and me bowl her frames. That's good because we can use all the practice we can get. We were there just the other day and they were having a Junior tournament. Wow! Those people were serious. One boy wore covers over his shoes (like a surgeon) when he wasn't bowling. I guess he didn't want to mess up his sliiiiiiiide, for when he lets go of the ball. On the topic of shoes, when we got home I had to carry Brooke into the house for nap time. I left my bowling shoes in the car and forgot about them. When I finally got them out, hours later, the glue holding the soles on had actually dissolved in the heat! I got some sticky stuff from WalMart to fix them. I hope it works...
We owed Debbi an Anniversary Lunch for being home one year with Brooke (a.k.a. We Survived China). We took her to Featherstones cause we all like it so much. Brooke still loves her Aunt Debbi! Once again, all I can say is Thank Heavens she was along!!!!!
Olivia posing - yes, that's a scratch across her face. Brooke's fingernails grow out every night like a werewolf. They were just playing and Olivia ended up like this.
Here's some attitude!!!!! She is so spunky!
Debbi had her hardwood floors refinished, and her pug needed a place to hang out to avoid the super-stinky fumes. So, instead of 3 lazy dogs sleeping on the sofa, I had four. Mugsy is such a sweetie!! He did so good! He slept in his bed - on the foot of our bed. Things got crowded, since Lucy wasn't giving up her place. Ha!
WHAT A FACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This picture won't mean anything to anyone else, but it means a lot to me. It is our new mower. The old mower is kaput!! YESSSSSS!!!! I have had to use the old mower for the last seven years. I have HATED that mower for seven years!! It was heavy as lead and totally uncooperative. (If I was a big guy like Mark, it would be fine, but I'm not...) So, now we have a nice simple Honda that I can zip around with and not feel like I'm going to have a heart attack. (Our yard isn't exactly level...)
Future architects.............. Uncle Robert will get them into Clemson...
As the Last Hurrah (Ha! Ha! Get it, Grandma Helen?) of summer, we took the girls to Chattanooga right before school started. Brooke hadn't been there before, but Olivia LOVES Chattanooga. We didn't rush and arrived around noon. We let the girls play in one of the little ponds in front of the aquarium, then we headed over to one of the little brewery/restaurants for lunch. Everything is within walking distance, so it's a great town to visit.
Brooke ordered spaghetti. We figured we'd be taking leftovers home, since she's not a big eater. But, she surprised us and ate her entire plate!!!! We thought she'd explode!
Olivia posing - yes, that's a scratch across her face. Brooke's fingernails grow out every night like a werewolf. They were just playing and Olivia ended up like this.
Here's some attitude!!!!! She is so spunky!
Debbi had her hardwood floors refinished, and her pug needed a place to hang out to avoid the super-stinky fumes. So, instead of 3 lazy dogs sleeping on the sofa, I had four. Mugsy is such a sweetie!! He did so good! He slept in his bed - on the foot of our bed. Things got crowded, since Lucy wasn't giving up her place. Ha!
WHAT A FACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This picture won't mean anything to anyone else, but it means a lot to me. It is our new mower. The old mower is kaput!! YESSSSSS!!!! I have had to use the old mower for the last seven years. I have HATED that mower for seven years!! It was heavy as lead and totally uncooperative. (If I was a big guy like Mark, it would be fine, but I'm not...) So, now we have a nice simple Honda that I can zip around with and not feel like I'm going to have a heart attack. (Our yard isn't exactly level...)
Future architects.............. Uncle Robert will get them into Clemson...
As the Last Hurrah (Ha! Ha! Get it, Grandma Helen?) of summer, we took the girls to Chattanooga right before school started. Brooke hadn't been there before, but Olivia LOVES Chattanooga. We didn't rush and arrived around noon. We let the girls play in one of the little ponds in front of the aquarium, then we headed over to one of the little brewery/restaurants for lunch. Everything is within walking distance, so it's a great town to visit.
Brooke ordered spaghetti. We figured we'd be taking leftovers home, since she's not a big eater. But, she surprised us and ate her entire plate!!!! We thought she'd explode!
Then it was back to the aquarium to go thru the freshwater (river) portion of the exhibit. (Brooke had soaked herself worse than we thought in the wading pool, so we had to change her clothes.)
They still have the special seahorse exhibit! I LOVE the seahorses!! They have every shape and size of seahorse. Unfortnately, my camera is not so good at capturing moving pictures in the dark.
My favorite seahorse is the Weedy Sea Dragon! They look like a fantasy drawing come-to-life.
Olivia and Brooke using the center viewing port. I wish I fit in there!
There was a woman doing glitter tattoos, so we just had to stop! (Mark hates this kind of stuff, but I think it's fun. He put up with it today.) We got our money's worth! They ended up lasting a week! First, the woman used a stencil and applied glue. Then she loaded on the glitter. Brooke went with the butterfly. Olivia chose a whale.
Watching the river otters. They move like eels, but they're a lot cuter.
Feeding time in one of the big tanks.
This same frog was sitting in the same spot, looking just like this, the last time we were there. He looks like he's made of bright, green vinyl and sits as still as stone.
I took this picture because the volunteer said that they almost never have their mouths open. It was a "big deal". Ok - if you say so... Brooke didn't like him at all.
And here is your typical nuclear turtle family - dad, mom, and the 2 kids... out to bask in the sun...
Oops! Brooke was caught making faces at herself in the mirror...
The girls enjoyed being able to get up close to the exhibits.
Olivia being a clown...
Brooke being a sweetie...
We made a quick dash to the Children's Museum after finding out they were closing early. It's so much fun for the girls! They can learn as they play. It's a great place.
The Brooke found the make up table...
They have a large art section, music section, doctor's office, archeology dig, etc. Everything is hands-on.
This thing makes horn sounds...
They even have costumes, music, and lighting you can run for the stage.
Digging for dinosauer bones!
And then Mark fed Olivia to the T-Rex!!!!!
The second floor of the Children's Museum holds the traveling exhibits. It changes from time to time. Right now they have a thing called "Grossology" - all about the human body and the gross things it does. What fun!!! But, that's what kids love! Here's a huge Operation game! (and I accidentally deleted a picture of a really neat robot that explained all about runny noses and snot. I can't get it back into place. I'll just add it in the next post...)
I didn't really believe this could smell that bad. But I was wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!! AARRGGHH!!!! They had sweat smells and foot smells, etc. Ack!!
The climbing wall is actually skin and all the pimples, scabs, moles, blisters and the like, that can mess it up. You have to give them points for imagination!
We saw the bee hive (yet another picture I accidentally deleted), and played on the rooftop playground. But the museum was closing and a storm was coming, so we headed back to the aquarium. This time we went thru the sea exhibit.
Olivia loves to touch the mantas. Brooke is not so keen...
We always look forward to the butterfly house.
They don't sit still for long, so it's hard to get pictures.
Then we moved on to the penquin exhibit. This couple were making their nest. Mom stayed on the nest, while dad brought more stones.
This is a mom and baby. The baby is the gray lump at her feet.
Shark cage!! Olivia is looking particularly fierce!
And the jellyfish! I forgot there were so many different kinds. These were pretty.
Brooke was ready to head home. She was VERY grouchy the last few minutes. She was alseep before we backed out of our parking place. It had been a long day with no nap, so she actually did really great. She's certainly a trooper!! It was a fun, tiring day.
They still have the special seahorse exhibit! I LOVE the seahorses!! They have every shape and size of seahorse. Unfortnately, my camera is not so good at capturing moving pictures in the dark.
My favorite seahorse is the Weedy Sea Dragon! They look like a fantasy drawing come-to-life.
Olivia and Brooke using the center viewing port. I wish I fit in there!
There was a woman doing glitter tattoos, so we just had to stop! (Mark hates this kind of stuff, but I think it's fun. He put up with it today.) We got our money's worth! They ended up lasting a week! First, the woman used a stencil and applied glue. Then she loaded on the glitter. Brooke went with the butterfly. Olivia chose a whale.
Watching the river otters. They move like eels, but they're a lot cuter.
Feeding time in one of the big tanks.
This same frog was sitting in the same spot, looking just like this, the last time we were there. He looks like he's made of bright, green vinyl and sits as still as stone.
I took this picture because the volunteer said that they almost never have their mouths open. It was a "big deal". Ok - if you say so... Brooke didn't like him at all.
And here is your typical nuclear turtle family - dad, mom, and the 2 kids... out to bask in the sun...
Oops! Brooke was caught making faces at herself in the mirror...
The girls enjoyed being able to get up close to the exhibits.
Olivia being a clown...
Brooke being a sweetie...
We made a quick dash to the Children's Museum after finding out they were closing early. It's so much fun for the girls! They can learn as they play. It's a great place.
The Brooke found the make up table...
They have a large art section, music section, doctor's office, archeology dig, etc. Everything is hands-on.
This thing makes horn sounds...
They even have costumes, music, and lighting you can run for the stage.
Digging for dinosauer bones!
And then Mark fed Olivia to the T-Rex!!!!!
The second floor of the Children's Museum holds the traveling exhibits. It changes from time to time. Right now they have a thing called "Grossology" - all about the human body and the gross things it does. What fun!!! But, that's what kids love! Here's a huge Operation game! (and I accidentally deleted a picture of a really neat robot that explained all about runny noses and snot. I can't get it back into place. I'll just add it in the next post...)
I didn't really believe this could smell that bad. But I was wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!! AARRGGHH!!!! They had sweat smells and foot smells, etc. Ack!!
The climbing wall is actually skin and all the pimples, scabs, moles, blisters and the like, that can mess it up. You have to give them points for imagination!
We saw the bee hive (yet another picture I accidentally deleted), and played on the rooftop playground. But the museum was closing and a storm was coming, so we headed back to the aquarium. This time we went thru the sea exhibit.
Olivia loves to touch the mantas. Brooke is not so keen...
We always look forward to the butterfly house.
They don't sit still for long, so it's hard to get pictures.
Then we moved on to the penquin exhibit. This couple were making their nest. Mom stayed on the nest, while dad brought more stones.
This is a mom and baby. The baby is the gray lump at her feet.
Shark cage!! Olivia is looking particularly fierce!
And the jellyfish! I forgot there were so many different kinds. These were pretty.
Brooke was ready to head home. She was VERY grouchy the last few minutes. She was alseep before we backed out of our parking place. It had been a long day with no nap, so she actually did really great. She's certainly a trooper!! It was a fun, tiring day.
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